The invention is generally related to lawn and garden equipment and more particularly related to apparatuses for storing garden hoses.
Hoses are frequently used for lawn care, gardening, and similar activities, but can be difficult and inconvenient to use. Each time a homeowner uses a hose, for example, he or she typically takes the hose out of storage, connects it to a faucet, and pulls the free end of the hose to the location where water is needed. When the homeowner is finished using the hose, the hose is frequently wound into a coil and carried to a basement or garage for storage. Hoses are long, heavy and cumbersome to handle. Coiled hoses in particular are difficult to lift and move because each loop of a coiled hose must be captured before the hose is moved to reduce the chance the hose will become uncoiled or tangled while being lifted or moved.
It is often easier to handle a hose if it is hung during storage as opposed to laying the coiled hose on a flat surface. It is convenient to hang a hose on a wall-mounted fixture and such fixtures are know in the art. These fixtures make using a hose easier because they can be easily mounted on a wall of a house or garage and are in fact often mounted next to the faucet. Although these fixtures provide a way to hang a hose in a convenient location, they do not simplify the problem of handling the coiled hose.
An example of a wall-mounted fixture is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. Des. 408,270. In the ""270 patent the fixture includes a body having a horizontally extending support surface and a vertically extending wall structure that extends upwardly from the horizontal support surface. When the fixture of the ""270 patent is mounted on a wall of a building, the horizontal support surface extends outwardly from the building wall and the vertically extending wall structure is spaced from the building wall. A coiled hose is supported on the horizontal support surface between the building wall and the vertical wall structure of the fixture of the ""270 patent. The vertically extending wall structure keeps the coiled hose from sliding off of the horizontal support surface during storage, but it also complicates the problem of coiling the hose around the fixture for storage and removing the hose from the fixture for use. For example, to remove a coiled hose from the fixture, the hose must be lifted off the support surface and over the vertically extending wall structure of the fixture.
The present invention provides a hose hanger apparatus for supporting a length of hose arranged in a coil adjacent a generally vertical support surface, such as a building wall or a fence. The apparatus includes a hose supporting body and a. hose retainer. The hose supporting body has a hose supporting surface and mounting structure constructed and arranged to enable the hose supporting body to be mounted to the generally vertical support surface in an operative position in which the hose supporting surface faces generally upwardly and extends generally outwardly away from the generally vertical support surface. The hose supporting body is constructed and arranged to enable the hose to be supported thereon when the hose supporting body is mounted in its operative position with the length of hose being arranged in a coil and the hose supporting surface supporting an upper portion of the coil. The hose retainer is movable between (a) a hose retaining position wherein, when the hose supporting body is in its operative position with the hose being arranged in a coil and supported thereon, the hose retainer extends upwardly adjacent the hose supporting surface and in spaced apart relation from the generally vertical support surface to inhibit the upper portion of the coil supported on the hose supporting surface from moving in a direction away from the generally vertical support surface off the hose supporting surface without first raising the hose to a height sufficient to vertically clear the hose retainer, and (b) a hose releasing position wherein, when the hose supporting body is in its operative position with the hose being arranged in a coil and supported thereon, the hose retainer is moved out of the hose retaining position to enable the hose to be removed from the hose supporting surface without the need for first raising the hose to a height sufficient to vertically clear the hose retainer and to enable the hose to be mounted onto the hose supporting body with the hose being arranged in a coil and the hose supporting surface supporting an upper portion of the coil without the need for first raising the unsupported hose to a height sufficient to vertically clear the hose retainer.
The hose hanger apparatus may optionally include a pair of side walls that extend downwardly away from the hose supporting surface and define an interior storage compartment suitable for storing articles to be used with the hose and a storage front panel movable between open and closed positions for controlling access to the interior storage compartment to facilitate storage and retrieval of the articles.